Tabla de contenidos para April 2015 en Robb Report

SOME AMBITIOUS HOMES are constructed to shelter their occupants; others are conceived to shelter their owners’ ambitions. In the early 19th century, many such shrines to dynastic aspiration rose in the Southern United Sates—nowhere more prolifically than in the town of Natchez, Miss. Yet by the 20th century, most of these antebellum monuments existed merely as memorials to lost fortunes and ruined lives. In the summer of 1932, two such once-proud places served as suitable settings for a tragedy that made headlines from New Orleans to New York. In the summer of 1932, two once-proud places served as suitable settings for a tragedy that made headlines from New Orleans to New York. On the evening of August 4, the Natchez sheriff’s phone rang. “You’d better come quick,” said the caller.…

FOUNDED A CENTURY ago on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, the eyewear company Moscot (moscot.com) is marking its centennial with the 100 Year Anniversary Collection. It includes this Lemtosh Smart matte-black acetate model ($270), which features diamond-shaped rivets on the front and temples. The collection also includes a Lemtosh model that folds at the bridge ($390) and another model with wood inlays on the front and temples ($320). The yellow-tinted lenses are part of the Moscot Smart Drive Package ($250), a set of three polarized lenses for different lighting conditions: yellow for nighttime, gray for sunny days, and vermilion for cloudy days.…

LIKE THE TURKISH brand’s hardtop model that preceded it, the recently launched Numarine 70 Flybridge (numarine.com) features extensive use of glass, which allows natural light to fill the saloon and cabins and lends a distinct look to the exterior. The flybridge includes seating and lounging areas, a wet bar, and room for a crane and a tender or personal watercraft. The yacht, which is designed to be owner operated, includes three en suite guest cabins. The master suite features two large windows on its hull walls, a walk-in closet, a spacious bathroom, a dressing table, and a sofa. On the main deck, the saloon has a galley and bar, a dining area, and a lounging area. The 70 Flybridge has a top speed of 34 knots and a cruising speed…

PIERRE CORTHAY LIKENS his refined footwear to a classic car’s chassis. “It’s all about the balance of the width, length, and volume,” says the 52-year-old cobbler, whose aesthetic was shaped by his grandfather’s collection of venerable vehicles. Like those timeless automobiles, Corthay’s distinctive shoes present sculptural silhouettes, nuanced colors and finishes, and subtly concealed details that enhance comfort. Awarded the prestigious Maître d’art by the French Minister of Culture for his excellence in craftsmanship, Corthay is considered among the world’s best shoemakers, and the demand for his creations is growing. “It is easy to have everything today, but not bespoke shoes, because you have to wait up to six months for a pair,” he says. “Today, people appreciate the humanness in handmade shoes, and they can see the human touch…

WHILE JAMES JOYCE enthusiasts look forward to Bloomsday, the annual celebration of the Irish author’s life and work that takes place June 16, Joyce fans who are also serious bibliophiles may be more interested in April 9 through 12, when the New York Antiquarian Book Fair comes to the Park Avenue Armory in Manhattan. The fair’s offerings will include at least one rare first-edition Ulysses, the Joyce novel that follows Dubliner Leopold Bloom for a day on June 16, 1904. Hailed as a masterpiece when it debuted in 1922, the 700-plus-page stream-of-consciousness tale has lost none of its potency with literati, and its first edition continues to gain popularity with collectors. The initial print run of the softcover novel yielded only 1,000 copies, none of which were allowed in the…

THE OWNERS KNEW what they wanted: something by turns comfortable and glamorous, fit for entertaining more than 100 people every so often and hosting a constant stream of small groups of friends. Their goal was a good-sized home (the main dwelling measures just under 10,500 square feet) that would be nonetheless homey and intimate, and they thought that a Spanish-style exterior (left) like those prevalent in California, where they once lived, would beautifully complement the Malaysian landscape. They also wanted the home to look as if it had been there for decades. Landry’s range impressed them. Having seen examples of his work in his book Modern to Classic: Residential Estates by Landry Design Group, they hired him and his Los Angeles–based team, as well as a broader group that included…

IN THE MASTER BEDROOM, the Kuala Lumpur skyline takes center stage thanks to a 13-footwide, 8.5-foot-tall window by Steelworks Etc., of Newbury Park, Calif. According to Rob Shattuck, the company president, the piece was logistically difficult to produce. The heavy steel window frame was sent from the States and hoisted into place—before the glass was installed—by a crew of 10 to 12 using ropes and pulleys. Neutral-colored Flexform furniture and Armani Casa table lamps defer to the view, as do the French-oak floor and ceiling. Intentionally, the bed does not face the jaw-dropping view. The home’s design adheres to the principles of vastu shastra, which, like those of feng shui, emphasize flow through a given space. Turning the bed toward the skyline would have gone against these tenets. Still, though…

THE UPPER FLOOR HOSTS the more private spaces in the home, including the office and study areas. The study lounge (above), favored by the wife, features a cheerful yellow wall that plays off of shades of yellow in the carpet. French oak graces the floors and ceilings, and the same sort of decorative chengal-wood beams that enliven the loggia also play a significant role here. Hallway-like in nature, the space serves as a natural gathering place for family members; the daughter must pass her mother’s work desk to reach her bedroom. Most of the study lounge’s furnishings came from the owners, but the space does feature one of Wilkes’s triumphs, which is visible at the far end of the room on the right: a Balinese linen closet he designed and…

PRIVATE AVIATION began just over 100 years ago, when a Florida entrepreneur purchased a biplane to carry passengers between St. Petersburg and Tampa. The 25-mile distance was then a 20-hour car trip. The Benoist Airboat, flying about 5 feet above the water, was the country’s first charter aircraft. Its designer predicted in 1914: “Some day people will be crossing oceans on airliners like they do on steamships today.” THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A SMARTER, MORE COMPELLING TIME FOR FLYING PRIVATELY A century later, business aviation continues to be driven by fast-changing technology and market forces. Its evolution is moving at a fast clip, though business models established over the last few decades are here to stay. Fractional ownership, on-demand charter, jet card membership, aircraft management, and other programs continue to…

THE 300SL WAS BUILT ON A RACECAR CHASSIS WITH HIGH SILLS THAT ENVELOPED THE DRIVER AND PRECLUDED THE USE OF TRADITIONAL DOORS. THE 300SL, THE first of the Mercedes-Benz SL-Class (for Sport Leicht, or “sport light”) models, was produced at the suggestion of Max Hoffman, the U.S. importer for several European automakers including the company then known as Daimler-Benz. Hoffman believed a refined, road version of the company’s W194 Grand Prix racer would do well in the U.S. market. He reportedly convinced Daimler-Benz to produce the 300SL by ordering 1,000 examples of the car before the company approved the project. Like the W194 racecar, the 300SL was built on an aluminum space-frame chassis formed with welded tubes to increase its strength and minimize its weight. The chassis’s high sills led…

THE DESIGNER IDAN YOSEFOV can appreciate the value of a functional and versatile bag. The 20-year-old Israeli traveled the world for 1ve years before completing his master studies in leather-bag making in Florence, Italy. Last year, following a journey that took him to Cambodia, Australia, the Netherlands, and Los Angeles, he cofounded Martella Leather Bags (martellabags.com). The company, which makes its products in Istanbul, o5ers 37 models, including the $937 Due Terzi (“two thirds”) shown here. It can be carried as a briefcase or a backpack, and it includes a protective smartphone compartment.…

A LIFELONG PASSION AND a presidential campaign are referenced in the design of the Montblanc John F. Kennedy Limited Edition 1917 (montblanc.com). Kennedy’s love of sailing is represented by the ropelike pattern that appears on the pen’s barrel and cap and by the engraving on the nib that depicts the lifesaver from Victura, his 50-foot sloop. The cap’s ring is engraved with his fffi0$ presidential campaign slogan: “A time for greatness.” The pen—which ranges in price from 82,577 to 82,107, depending on type—will be limited to ff,fiff1 examples, a reference to the year of Kennedy’s birth.…

PROVING THAT EVERYTHING is bigger in Texas, the new fi3-story JW Marriott Austin (jwmarriottaustin.com) opened in February as the luxury brand’s largest North American hotel, towering over nearly an entire block of the capital city’s fast-growing downtown area. The 0,ff07-room property o2ers appropriately bold amenities, including a food truck–style restaurant and a sweeping rooftop pool terrace with views of Lady Bird Lake and the State Capitol. Nearby, in the bucolic Hill Country just west of the city, the Lake Austin Spa Resort (lakeaustin.com) has debuted 0ff renovated garden suites. Completed in October, the new-look accommodations at the lakeside retreat feature 07-foot-high wooden ceilings, opulent fabrics, and custom-made furnishings. The Inn at Dos Brisas (dosbrisas.com)—a Relais & Châteaux resort set on a fi0fi-acre ranch between Austin and Houston—will soon debut a…

THE ITALIAN YACHT designer Federico Fiorentino (federicofiorentino.it) has introduced a 164-foot concept vessel called The Belafonte. The design features a streamlined, bronzecolored hull and superstructure that are made of aluminum. It calls for a fast-displacement hull that would enable a top speed of 18 to 24 knots, depending on the propulsion system. The yacht would accommodate 10 guests in five cabins, including a 904-square-foot main-deck owner’s suite with a fold-down balcony, two bathrooms, and two walk-in closets. The main deck’s design also includes a spacious saloon with a dining area, as well as a swimming pool. The partially enclosed upper deck would feature an outdoor dining area, a shaded bar, and a hot tub.…

THE SCENT OF eucalyptus fills the air as I hastily flip a yellow felt ball skyward and—thump!—hit it hard across the court. The ball’s flight, however, proves neither powerful nor true, ending lazily in no-man’s-land on the other side of the net. Robin White—a two-time U.S. Open Champion in doubles and mixed doubles who is now the director of tennis at Southern California’s Rancho Valencia resort—is not discouraged. “Slow down the beginning and make sure to bring your racket up by your ponytail,” she says, adding that, rather than throwing the ball, I should focus on “placing” it in the air. Attempting this softer approach, I send my next serve firmly across the court, landing it squarely in the corner of the backside box. “How did you like that one?”…

THE TERM S-CLASS is a shortened and anglicized version of Sonderklasse, which in German means “special class.” In addition to “special,” the S could also stand for “safe,” “serene,” or “sumptuous”— each of which describes the Mercedes-Benz models that have carried the S-Class moniker since 1972, when the company officially applied it to its flagship vehicles. The name has lent the cars an air of superiority over the brand’s more accessible offerings. The new S-Class Coupe is the first two-door Mercedes-Benz to bear the Sonderklasse designation since the 1998 model year, when the S500 Coupe and S600 Coupe (previously known as the 500 SEC and 600 SEC) became the CL-Class (Coupé Leicht, or “coupe light”). The return of the S-Class name promises a special experience for drivers and passengers of the…

THE FOYER (above) achieves precisely the right balance of elegance and understatement; instead of showily sprawling to the second floor, the staircase is tucked to one side, almost out of sight of arriving guests. The spotlight shines softly but perhaps more dramatically on such spaces as the courtyard (left), whose wall of lanterns takes after a similar lighting array at the Four Seasons Resort in Langkawi, Malaysia, for which Wilkes was an interior designer. Landry designed the lanterns and had Tuscan Iron Works of South El Monte, Calif., produce them in forged iron and custom-bent glass. (The company also created the three lanterns on the courtyard’s other walls.) There are 68 lamps in all, a total the owners chose partly because the numbers 6 and 68 represent prosperity in Mandarin.…

THIS PART OF the property, the loggia, is the type of space that almost every Landry design has, no matter what the architectural style is. “It’s about transitioning from indoors to out and being protected from the sun and the rain,” Landry says. “It becomes a great extension to the house.” Here, he placed the loggia at the home’s northeast corner—an ideal spot owing to its horizon view and proximity to a large lawn. This outdoor area seemingly possesses its own gravitational pull, never failing to lure visitors from the dining and living rooms, say the owners. The reddish ceiling beams, which were left in the sun for a few months to attain the desired look, add a feeling of authenticity, while the wicker furniture from Restoration Hardware contributes to…

DR. PHILIP “FLIP” STANDER bounds ahead of his guests, eager to share a discovery he made on the grounds of Namibia’s Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp. The Cambridge-educated zoologist—who has been studying the Namib Desert’s elusive lion population for more than 15 years—has a knack for uncovering the area’s hidden treasures. The current source of his excitement, however, is neither a cat nor any other living creature, but rather the vestiges of a nomadic people who roamed this barren stretch of northwestern Namibia thousands of years ago. “If you look around on the ground you can find shards of pottery,” Stander says as he surveys a jumble of rocks, his intense blue eyes peering out from behind a bushy beard the color of the desert’s famed dunes. “Here’s one now.” Delicately,…

THE NIXIE MACHINE’S DESIGNER, THE GERMAN ARTIST FRANK BUCHWALD, DESCRIBES IT AS AN “ALTAR OF TIME.” THE GERMAN ARTIST Frank Buchwald, best known for his Machine Lights series of illuminated sculptures, has found a creative application for a cache of unused, decades-old Nixie tubes. The cold cathode neon readout tubes were employed for the numeric displays in a variety of technical equipment until they were rendered obsolete by vacuum fluorescent displays and light-emitting diodes in the 1980s. Buchwald showcases the tubes, which were made in East Germany in the 1960s and came to him from a collector, in the Nixie Machine, a 3-foot-long, 16.5-inch-tall device that he describes as an “altar of time.” Each machine is made of burnished steel and brushed brass and features three pairs of Nixie tubes…

THE NEW COLLECTION of sunglasses from Ermenegildo Zegna (zegna.com) includes these rimless aviator ($380, left) and vintage wayfarer ($295, right) models. The aviators fold at the bridge and come with a leather carrying case. The temples are made of lightweight titanium, and the lenses are produced by the 169-year-old German optics company Zeiss. The wayfarer model’s frame is made of acetate and is available in four colors. Both models display the Zegna logo on the temples.…

A RENOWNED SURFER’S retreat on Indonesia’s Sumba Island, Nihiwatu (nihiwatu.com) has debuted a luxurious new look suitable for discerning vacationers and hard-core wave-chasers alike. Completed this spring, the $15 million transformation of the 1,074-acre property included the addition of 12 villas with gauzy canopy beds, Sumbanese teak furnishings, and oversize terraces with private pools. The villas and the preexisting 21 accommodations (all of which underwent top-to-bottom renovations) are attended by moriumas, or butlers, who can arrange spa treatments, make reservations at the resort’s new restaurant, and organize surfing excursions with a resident pro.…

A MALAYSIAN FAMILY bought the Kuala Lumpur property over the telephone, sight unseen. It was intended as a real estate investment, and they knew the neighborhood well. The thing that escaped them initially was what a gem they had acquired. Although the lot’s existing house did not take advantage of the city views (the structure was built before the skyscrapers began to rise), the 0.75-acre site itself offered spectacular vistas of the skyline (above). Ultimately, the owners decided to build a new house (right) to frame the views— the feature that convinced them to make it their main residence. They called on the architect Richard Landry to realize their grand vision.…

FAMILY LIFE FLOURISHES in the living room, which offers many delights. The grand piano, a Steinway, is not merely for show. The homeowners’ daughter takes lessons, and talented family friends sometimes come by to put the instrument’s keys through their paces. Original artworks, such as the red-dominated, muscular abstract by the Texas-born artist Cecil Touchon, have pride of place, but there is room for playfulness, too. Mingling with the sculptures of Buddhist monks (foreground, left) and the Chola bronzes (behind the far sofa and in the foyer) are colorful cone-shaped Moroccan tagines. The cooking containers direct the eye to the coffee table, which is by the French designer Christian Liaigre, a favorite of both the owners and Wilkes. They admire his clean, contemporary look, which is perpetuated by the side…

THE FAMILY ROOM (above) flows seamlessly into the breakfast nook (above at back left) and the kitchen (left, and above at back right), creating an open layout that feels more West than East. According to the owners, this free-form use of space is an atypical approach to design in Asia, where the area would usually be divided into at least two rooms. It is a family room, indeed. The owners estimate that, when they are at home, someone is hanging out here about 80 percent of the time. And on those frequent occasions they are surrounded by details seen elsewhere in the house. The rugged coffee table by Raintree Accents is made of suar wood, the same material used in the formal dining room’s table. The table lamp and side…

THE ESTATE’S TREES are largely indigenous, with one notable exception: The palm trees near the house (shown on the preceding page) are Washingtonia robusta, a type that thrives in California and Mexico. Certainly Malaysia offers its own vast botanical wealth, but the landscaping at this home serves the same purpose as it does most anyplace else—to beautify and to safeguard privacy. The owners wanted something lush but not overly manicured—controlled chaos, in other words. With that in mind, and with keen attention to Landry’s design, Inchscape’s Lim In Chong chose flora with a Spanish-Californian feel. “I tried to work with the architecture so we would have a harmonious whole,” he says. Two firecracker heliconias, whose broad leaves recall those on a banana plant, flank the stairs to the pool. Nearby,…